San Leandro police seek man who crashed Jeep

A street in San Leandro was shut down this morning as police searched for a man who crashed his Jeep onto the lawn of a home and then fled the scene, a police lieutenant said.

Several officers saw a man traveling at a high rate of speed nearing 100 miles per hour at about 7:15 a.m., police Lt. Randall Brandt said. The car turned onto Elsie Avenue before going out of control and coming to rest in front of a home.

The man left his Jeep Cherokee on the lawn of 477 Elsie Ave., homeowner Joanne McBride said.

"I was reading the paper with my husband and we heard a crash," McBride said. She saw the suspect flee afterward.

"He ran west across the street, through a yard and toward East 14th Street," she said.

She said the man was white and in his 20s, and was wearing a blue sweatshirt and jeans and carrying a backpack.

Some residents told police that they saw the man with a gun, but police have not confirmed that there was a gun, Brandt said.

McBride, 73, said no damage was done to her property, and that police have left the scene.

Another resident of Elsie Avenue, Nathan Smith, said vegetation around homes in the neighborhood could provide the suspect with good hiding spots.

"There are a ton of places to hide in these overgrown backyards," Smith said.

Skid marks could be seen in the roadway in front of Emil Villa's Hickory Pit at 1800 E. 14th Street where the suspect had apparently turned onto Elsie Avenue.